Racism,Diversity Equity and Inclusion

An interview between two people in an urban setting

Career Prospects for Public Health Graduates Remain Strong

Krystle Forbes

Demand for public health professionals remains high, as does hiring for students graduating with public degrees. During the pandemic, some areas of public health have seen disruption in the services they provide. But this has also clarified our deep, ongoing need for those services.

Map of global dots connected by lines

It's Time to Rethink Capacity Building in Global Health Work

K. Rivet Amico

Capacity building is a ubiquitous phrase in grant applications, communications, and guidelines for many global health initiatives. Too often the phrase connotes an assumption that “established” US partners build knowledge or practice in “less-resourced” communities. What language can we use to more honestly recognize the value and contributions of all collaborators?

Tonya Allen, President of the McKnight Foundation, alum of the University of Michigan School of Public Health

Resilient Leadership in a Dynamic World

Tonya Allen, BA '94, MPH/MSW '96

From rewriting rules to enabling others to succeed, Tonya Allen thinks leadership is not about an individual person doing a great thing but about an environment where everyone wins. In Detroit and now Minneapolis, Allen keeps putting herself out there so that entire communities can thrive.

Illustration of a policing situation

Systemic Racism, Policing, and Public Health Advocacy

Q&A with Payton Watt and Jamison Koeman

It can take a long time to develop new policy, and some advocacy roads lead to dead ends. But good advocacy work always makes a difference. As racism, policing, and police reform were becoming the national public health story of the summer, student leaders led a remote advocacy initiative to continue bringing public health insights to the discourse.

Health care worker taking a patient's blood pressure in a clinic

Should I Take the COVID Vaccine as a Minority?

Anita Pandit, MS ’16

How are managing mental health and receiving a COVID vaccine similar? They both require minorities to have some level of trust in health sciences and the people administering their health care. Alum Anita Pandit walks us through the good and the bad reasons not getting a vaccine—and why she will be getting one.

Black patient checking blood oxygen levels with a pulse oximeter

Black People Are Three Times More Likely to Experience Pulse Oximeter Errors

Susan Dorr Goold, Michael Sjoding, and Thomas Valley

Pulse oximeters can noninvasively measure blood oxygen levels, a vital biomarker for many. But these devices are imperfect and provide inaccurate readings especially for Black patients. Why are these devices flawed, and how can we improve the technology?